


We'll Never Say Goodbye

by Zaryav



Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Limbo, Eddie Kaspbrak Loves Richie Tozier, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Mike Hanlon is a Good Friend, Post-IT Chapter Two (2019), Richie Tozier Loves Eddie Kaspbrak, Temporary Character Death, Voodoo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-14
Updated: 2021-01-14
Packaged: 2021-03-12 03:16:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28753506
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zaryav/pseuds/Zaryav
Summary: Three more knots and all he sees is a blinding white glow that makes him wonder for a second if he's dead."You're not dead, you idiot..." The brightness diminishes, his body itches and his eyes cry."Eddie..." he says in a breath that takes him breath away. Richie wonders if it's possible to feel the world move like crazy and at the same time feel like everything stops.
Relationships: Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier
Kudos: 6





	We'll Never Say Goodbye

**Author's Note:**

> One Shot written for the third lightning challenge organized by Es de Fanfics.

"Do you still have hope?" That voice repeats in his head, and it sounds like a bad imitation of Eddie. "All your imitations are bad, especially when you imitate me, you idiot."

For a second Richie laughs, his muscles are tense and he feels like his stomach is being pierced by a fist that hits insistently, and what a fucking irony is that a pierced stomach is what brought him here from the start.

Mike's holding his hand and Richie could kiss this great man, because he knows he would have passed out from the start if it weren't for his friend.

A woman finally walks in and carries with her a couple of things that Richie can't distinguish between the darkness of the room that's barely lit by a couple of candles that Richie appreciates aren't those kinds of scented candles because Richie hates them and he doesn't need more nausea than he already feels.

The first thing she does is sit in front of him, she supports her arms on the table and places her things in front of both of them. A doll made with that fabric that reminds him of those old potato sacks and a couple of pins. The woman reaches out to Richie, and Mike pats him on the shoulder to hand him the lock of Eddie's hair.

"Are you going to nail those things to him?" Richie asks pointing at the pins. The woman looks at him with her small black eyes and denies.

"Relax Richie, she knows what she's doing." Mike offers comfort in his soft comforting voice, but even the ever-laid-back Mike Hanlon can't make the hole growing in Richie's stomach go away.

"Right, shit..."

The woman begins to stick the pins in the fabric of the doll that's eerily identical to Eddie. For a few more seconds the voice of what seems to be Eddie is heard in her head, but it's not the tired and haggard adult, it's the boy with the big eyes and squeaky voice who speaks to him. Richie can't understand what he's saying to him, but he sounds like he's angry.

The woman indicates that she has finished the doll and the next thing she does is show Richie a little version of himself next to Eddie's doll and that makes him run away.

"Hey Richie, here's how to do this, don't worry..."

"Are you going to stick that in my body!?" Richie recoils crashing into a piece of furniture and receiving a blow to the ankle that makes him writhe in pain. The woman watches him with her tired eyes and only asks him to get on a stretcher that's actually a table covered by some pieces of cloth. Richie looks at Mike who grins at him and shit, he has to do this.

As expected for someone so tall, his limbs fall off the ends of the makeshift stretcher which makes him a bit more uncomfortable than it already is to see a doll that apparently is you being nailed with a million of pins.

The woman, who hasn't introduced herself with a name, walks over to Richie holding the dolls in her hands. She leaves them both on a table. "Close your eyes, and clear your mind, you cannot hold onto anything that's in this world."

Richie does what she tells him, he tries hard not to think about anything and it's really easy, he's an expert in not thinking about anything. But flashes of old childhood memories of him hit him suddenly, confusing his mind.

"I'll tie nine knots to open a connection between both worlds, you may feel a slight dizziness." Richie clenches his fists and Eddie's voice seems to sound closer and closer.

By the sixth knot, Richie wants to give up, the nausea is too much, but Mike holds his hand tightly and Richie asks his body to resist a little more.

Three more knots and all he sees is a blinding white glow that makes him wonder for a second if he's dead.

"You're not dead, you idiot..." The brightness diminishes, his body itches and his eyes cry.

Richie gets up with inordinate speed, his heart pounding. He's sitting on the lawn facing the Derry River. A blow snaps him out of his trance and Richie spins around with speed, twisting his neck in a way similar to one of those bad bewitched doll movies.

"Eddie..." he says in a breath that takes him breath away. The way he says it sounds like a plaintive groan, and Richie wonders if it's possible to feel the world move like crazy and at the same time feel like everything stops.

"I'm not going to sit there, so move your ass, asshole." Eddie turns around and Richie doesn't wait two more seconds before running after Eddie. "It took you forever, honestly Richard I don't know what makes you think you own my fucking time."

"You're... you're a child."

Eddie rolls his eyes. "Tell me something I don't know, Richie. You're too."

Richie stops to look at his body. He's wearing one of his father's old Hawaiian shirts and a pair of jeans that strangely fit him. "How's that... how's it possible? Eddie, how's this possible?"

"You fight a fucking monster dressed as a clown, you watch me die, we find ourselves in a kind of fucking limbo, and what surprises you is having a pair of pants that fit you well?"

"How did you know-?"

"Richie, I'm in your head, whatever that means."

"You died and now you're in my head? What the fuck?" Eddie laughs.

"I don't understand any of this either, but something told me I'd see you one last time and now I'm here on... the river of Derry?"

Richie blushes and sinks with a pained smile. "I have no idea why we are here..."

"Mm, this really sucks. I was so happy to die at 5'61 and now I'm a fucking kid again."

"One with a trucker's mouth, boy, what the hell is that vocabulary, Eds?"

"Shut your mouth, you have said and heard worse things from your own mouth." Richie laughs. "What the hell are you laughing at? It's true, your stupid show isn't even familiar."

"Oh, so I have to assume you saw my show, was it live or are you one of those perverts who masturbates in his office?" Richie hits Eddie with his bony shoulder, which infuriates Eddie who's about to hit Richie.

"Fuck off." Eddie walks away being followed by Richie who holds his stomach and is surprised when they are suddenly in the quarry. "What's that?"

Eddie points to an old tape recorder and a box of cassettes. Richie shrugs and follows Eddie who's now sitting watching each cassette.

"Oh..."

"What?"

"I did this, remember? Wi-with Diamond Dogs because you were obsessed with getting into a stupid motorcycle gang."

Richie nods. "I think this was from my last day in Derry, before college. I came to listen to music and I must have forgotten this box here." He kicks the box and Eddie continues to stare at the cassette and plays with it.

"Are there other places around here?"

"I don't know, I don't know what the fuck is going on here, Eds." Eddie nods and pulls Richie by the arm.

"Let's go, follow me."

They both start walking, Richie being pulled by Eddie even though he could easily snatch him away with his long strides.

They arrive at the town fair, but there's no one there, just them and Eddie seems satisfied with that because he never liked crowds of people. Especially those who were always calling him "fag."

"Is that the old corn dogs stand?" Eddie points to a red cart in the center of the place, Richie smiles and runs in the direction of it.

"Eds, the best corn dogs in the fucking world! Oh shit." Richie pulls out two corn dogs and hands one to Eddie. "Let's go up to the Devil's Walk! We couldn't climb even once because it was always full of morons."

"Uh, I don't know, Rich, I-" Eddie says, but Richie's wounded dog pout makes him give up and follow his friend.

They're in front of the noria, the first to get on a seat is Richie and Eddie follows him without questioning how this is going to work without someone turning it on, but that doesn't seem to be a problem because Richie seems to have control of the situation.

"I hope you enjoy the view, Eddie Spaghetti."

"Don't call me that, asshole." Richie laughs and puts an arm around Eddie's shoulders before ruffling him. "Rich, why are we here?"

"Because we always wanted to go up-"

"No," Eddie denies waving his hands and frowning. "Why are we in Derry? On the river or at the quarry. Why at this fair?"

"Uh, I already told you, I don't know."

Oh, but Richie did know why they were in those places. Richie's first riverside kiss with Alyssa Edwards, and Eddie's last day in Derry. And the fair, when Eddie and Richie decided to wait for the rest of the losers to avoid entering the house of scares. Richie would never bring it up, but every place had a relationship with Eddie.

"Rich, I don't think you made me wait that long to eat this on a stupid noria."

"Yeah, it's not even as scary as they said, let's get out of here, Eds." The game stops and the two go downstairs, Eddie follows Richie who appears to be escaping until they reach the Arcade and Richie's face seems to lose any trace of color. "Shit..."

"Rich, I- what's wrong?" Richie keeps his gaze on one of the machines and Eddie has to move him several times to make him react. "Why didn't you tell me about Bowers?"

"What?" Richie asks.

"Why didn't you tell us that he told you those... things?" Richie stands still for a couple of seconds, as if the gears in his head are having trouble working properly. "Rich?"

"For what?" He says and it sounds gruffer than he expected. Eddie backs off an inch, but he doesn't falter because Eddie never falters.

"For what? To help you, idiot. We're your friends."

_Yes, until you knew what he's._

_A dirty fag._

"Do you... do you think we would have judged you? Ben? Bev? Mike? Or Bill or Stan? Or... me?"

Richie doesn't know when all those tears have accumulated in his eyes. Or why does he feel like that stupid thirteen-year-old boy again.

_So scared._

"Richie, we love you."

"Yeah? I thought you all hated me, Eddie. You didn't write after you went to fucking town."

"Because I forgot everything, Richard! I couldn't write if I couldn't remember any of you, but that doesn't mean I don't love you."

"Mmm."

"Why are we here, Richie? Why did you make me stay?" Eddie asks.

"I did nothing."

"No? And all that shitty crying?" Eddie insists. "What do you want to tell me? Why did you keep me waiting?"

Because I miss you.

"I did nothing!"

"Right, so I think I can go now. Bye, Richie." Richie feels a tug and a groan escapes of him, that seems to stop Eddie. "I guess I'm not here for you right?" Eddie asks, but he doesn't seem to want an answer. "This is about me, and you- because you… Richie, I think I always loved you."

"What a-?"

"I didn't write because I was so in love with you that I thought if I got an answer from you, I… would run back to you again."

"You were? But you were married and- how?"

"I don't know, Rich, okay? I think I was always like you..."

"And we didn't say anything?"

Eddie laughs. "I guess we're a couple of idiots."

"Speak for yourself, you don't know how to woo a boy."

"Oh, shut your mouth, Richard."

"I'll see you later, Eds?"

"Maybe, Rich..."

**Author's Note:**

> I have to confess that I had no idea how to use Voodoo in this place. I'm not an expert in this type of ritual and I hope not to offend anyone with my vague interpretation of what I understood by reading some things on the internet, at no time has it been my intention to discredit this type of ritual.


End file.
